Thirteen penalties, nine of them accepted, gave a self-inflicted feel to the Seattle Seahawks' home defeat Sunday.

There were additional contributing factors, however, and one stood out for its contrast last season. Mike Williams, the feel-good story of the 2010 season for Seattle, went from non-factor to negative factor during the team's 23-17 defeat to the Washington Redskins in Week 12.

Eric D. Williams of the Tacoma News Tribune says Williams remains unflinchingly honest in his self-assessments. Mike Williams, who suffered a shoulder injury at one point in the game: "I kind of landed on my shoulder. But I wasn’t playing good anyway, so I don’t think it mattered if I was healthy or not. Like I said, this whole year has been not what I’ve been accustomed to, and not what I had for myself from the beginning. So I have to kind of get out of this rut and try to get my rhythm back. But today there were some plays and an opportunity for me to have a big day, and it just didn’t work out." Noted: The Seahawks need more from Williams, particularly with Sidney Rice suffering another concussion. Williams ranks eighth on the team with 14 catches after leading the Seahawks with 65 last season.

Dave Boling of the Tacoma News Tribune says the Seahawks' penalty problems should compel coach Pete Carroll to reduce playing time for certain offenders. Boling: "While crediting Carroll for building an aggressive and intense group of players who will take no abuse -- even if it’s during the coin toss -- he and his staff have been wildly ineffective at stemming the weekly avalanche of penalty flags. For a while, the argument that the Seahawks were among the youngest teams in the NFL seemed fair and valid. But it’s getting worse. And the recidivism is inexcusable."

Steve Kelley of the Seattle Times says Seahawks quarterback Tarvaris Jackson fell short of Matt Hasselbeck's standard during the fourth quarter Sunday. Kelley: "These are the moments that define an NFL quarterback. Late game. Down a score. The stadium jittery with nervous anticipation. All of the great ones are measured by these moments. From Bobby Waterfield to Peyton Manning, Sammy Baugh to Tom Brady, the best quarterbacks find ways to march their offenses through the teeth of angry defenses in the scalding hot pressure of necessary fourth quarters." Noted: The Seahawks aren't asking Jackson or any quarterback to carry their offense. I also thought it was clear Jackson's pectoral injury affected his ability to deliver the ball Sunday. If he was already an average or below-average starter, the injury has made him worse than that. The penalties that affected field position proved too much to overcome, particularly without reliable wide receivers. Williams dropped passes. Doug Baldwin appeared to cut off a route late in the game.